Edison products play role in Spartans' rise

Bob Highfill

Thursday

Dec 27, 2012 at 12:01 AM

San Jose State had a near perfect season.

San Jose State had a near perfect season.

The right coach. The right players. The right breaks.

And when that happens for a program not accustomed to sustained success, change happens. The Spartans are no different. After engineering one of the best comeback stories in 2012, coach Mike MacIntyre bolted for Colorado after three seasons in the Silicon Valley. The Spartans went from 1-12 in MacIntyre's first season to 10-2 this season, earning a Top 25 ranking and a berth in the Military Bowl against Bowling Green at noon today on ESPN.

Three Stockton products, all from Edison High, have been along for the rags-to-riches story, and two of them, sophomore defensive lineman Foloi Vae and senior running back Josh Brown, will be on the field today at RFK Stadium in Washington, D.C., the former home of the Washington Redskins. The third, freshman linebacker Hector Roach, did not make the trip for unspecified reasons. The trio did their part to help the Spartans achieve their best record since 1987, when they went 10-2 under coach Claude Gilbert, and make their first bowl appearance since the 2006 New Mexico Bowl under coach Dick Tomey. San Jose State's only losses this season were to No. 8 Stanford (20-17), which plays Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day, and Utah State (49-27), which beat Toledo 41-15 on Dec. 15 in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.

Defensive coordinator Kent Baer has been San Jose State's interim head coach since MacIntyre announced he was leaving Dec. 10. The No. 24 Spartans hired San Diego coach Ron Caragher to take over the program after today's game. Caragher will choose his coaching staff, likely meaning Baer and other assistants from MacIntyre's regime will need to find new jobs.

MacIntyre instilled discipline and accountability, and recruited athletes many programs passed over. He developed a team that bonded quickly, anxious to prove what it could do.

"His passion about the game," was what Roach said impressed him most about MacIntyre. "He's real passionate about the game. He cares a lot about the sport and he cares about the players, too."

Roach started the season third on the depth chart at linebacker, though he saw significant playing time and was listed as the first-string linebacker after Derek Muaava suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 4. Roach started in two of the final three games and assisted on seven tackles.

Vae will start today in the absence of defensive tackle Anthony Larceval, who entered the hospital Dec. 15 with a serious illness, according to San Jose State athletics media relations director Lawrence Fan. Vae has played in 11 games this season and made five tackles, including two unassisted.

MacIntyre recruited Vae while other programs didn't show much interest in the 6-foot-3, 278-pound tackle. Vae played in 11 games as a reserve in 2010 and redshirted last season. He came into this season believing it could be special.

"Before the season we all worked hard," Vae said. "Everybody came together and matured together instead of being individuals. We care for each other more than we did in the past."

In some ways, MacIntyre became an authority figure to Vae, whose father, Foloi, died when Vae was 11 years old.

"It was hard because I was young," Vae said. "But as I got older, I used it as motivation."

Brown walked-on at San Jose State and has been a valuable member of the team primarily as a scout player. This year, he was awarded a scholarship and was named the Spartans' offensive scout team player of the year.

"It was a testament to all of my hard work in college and walking on to the program," Brown said. "That's something that everyone wants to earn, so your mom doesn't have to pay for schooling."

Like Vae, Brown lost his father, though Brown was a junior in high school when his dad, pastor Harry Brown, passed away. His mother, Mary, currently is battling an illness. Brown didn't want to go into specifics about her condition.

"She's a fighter," he said.

And so is her son, who had to find a way to pay for his education until he received a scholarship from MacIntyre this semester. The youngest of six kids in his family, the 5-7, 180-pound Brown has earned his spot on the football team by portraying the opposing team's best small running back in order to prepare the starters in practice, while rarely seeing playing time in games. Brown just completed his degree in communications with a minor in sociology and will walk with his classmates this spring.

San Jose State hopes Caragher builds on the foundation MacIntyre created. The Spartans are slated to return eight offensive starters and six on defense. They are on a roll, having won six in a row, 10 of their past 11, and 12 of their past 14 dating to the end of last season.

"Everyone who plays in a collegiate program wants to play in a season like this," Brown said. "I was here when the program wasn't too good, so to see that turnaround has been incredible."